Namibian patients receive restorative medicine

The restorative medicine practised by a local and a South African surgeon, Dr Jacques Jonck and Dr Mark Myerson, has entered a new dimension when the formidable duo started working with the Ministry of Health and Social Services, to identify government patients with clubfoot affliction for remedial surgery.

These operations are conducted under the Steps2Walk banner, a non-profit group that has contributed to dramatic changes in the lives of people who normally would not have access to this type of specialist treatment, especially for patients with foot and ankle deformities.

For the first time, the operatic procedures are televised on site, using the opportunity to train and familiarise more specialists with the surgical techniques practised by Dr Myerson and his team.

The actual surgeries were live streamed at Lady Pohamba Private Hospital, serving as a Continuous Professional Development (CPD) platform for other surgeons. The surgeries in theatre were live streamed to the Training Room, where ten Namibian and three South African doctors were given the opportunity to witness and learn from the surgeries in real-time.

In the process, the Myerson surgical team transferred critical knowledge to local healthcare professionals.

Founded in 2000, Dr Myerson and his team at Steps2Walk have been treating disabling deformities that limit their patients from leading productive lives. The majority of their patients have suffered from these ailments since childhood and it has continued into adulthood, limiting their productivity, participation in household and community activities, and leading to profound psychological impairment.

By The Staff Reporter

https://economist.com.na/80973/health/namibian-patients-with-foot-and-ankle-deformities-treated-in-groundbreaking-surgery/